They have arrived! Cute cute cute wood duck babies.

The ducklings started hatching yesterday late afternoon.  Even though I knew it was coming I was quite surprised to peek in with my camera and see extra faces!

I checked again before bed and happened to catch Skyler out for dinner.  I can confidently count at least 13 ducklings in this picture! I was also able to take a quick video.  In the very beginning you can here the peeping.

A warm wiggly pile.  I so badly want to hold one!
(But I didn't.)

Look at that sweet little face!

I knew that meant that they would be leaving the next by early the next morning.  I set my alarm and went outside to keep watch.  I shouldn't have paused to make coffee!  I literally missed them popping out by five minutes.  As I was walking up they were swimming away.  By the time I quickly got out my camera, they were already hard to spot.  I'll try to catch them later in the week while they are out swimming.  Bummer, though.

They are the tiny black spot crossing the stream of sunlight
in the center of the shot.  So fast.

When they are not swimming, wood ducks find nearby bushes to hide in.  I hope they will be safe!  The won't learn to fly for weeks, so their mama will have to watch out for them.  Of the 21 eggs, 4 did not hatch -  so that is 17 ducklings in all.

If you are up for the gory details, here is what the nest looked like after they were gone.  Just a bunch of carnage. Two of the eggs never hatched and two partially hatched.

My  view from the yard after I got up early, but missed the "jump".
Too nice to go back inside.

Hopefully, we will get to see the ducklings as they spend their days growing on the pond.  If I catch a photo of them, I will definitely let you know.  Enjoy!

Waiting no-so-patiently

No ducklings yet.  My guess is that it will be any day.

Each morning and evening I peek in with my camera to see if I can spy any activity. The wood duck society says that once the ducks start hatching, they will leave their nest the very next morning. I don't want to miss it.

Last evening I happened to catch Skyler out of her nest for dinner. I was able to check the eggs a little more closely and I can tell they are not starting to pip yet. 'Pipping' is the term that describes when the ducks first start to hatch.  

While she waits for her babies to hatch, Skyler has been adding even more down to her nest to keep her eggs warm. If you look closely, you can see the eggs under the fluff.

Here is a short video I took this morning when I was checking on her nest. She's not real fond of it and hisses at me. But I can see that she still there and doing a good job.